Leadership and indiscretions

What is it that makes us all think we can get away with it? And by all, I
mean all men. It seems that across the board, and irrespective of
political affiliation, men have failed at exhibiting the better part of
valor when it comes to sex. The recent and devastating implosions of
once-powerful men, whether Arnold Schwarzenegger, Rep. Anthony Weiner
(D-N.Y.) or former Sen. John Edwards (D-N.C.) suggest a powerful
connection between sex, power and the public eye.

But what many forget is the fact that married men cheat all the time. The alarming divorce rate and rate of out-of-wedlock births alone is proof enough of this. So it should come as no surprise that men who reach the pinnacles of power succumb to some of the same problems that mere mortals struggle with every day. Or should it? After all, people in power know that fame is a double-edged sword. It amplifies your successes and failures alike. You would think that discretion in sexual matters would be on the first page of the public figure's handbook. And yet, time and again, the sexual indiscretions of powerful men spill out of the bedroom and onto the front page.

But this brings up a real question about leadership. Some would question whether a man who has cheated on his spouse and lied about it to the public the way Weiner did is really fit for leadership. My question is, given what we know now about men in power, and a few exceptional women, are they any less qualified once their indiscretions have surfaced than they were before so?